Page 80 of Sin and Deception

She scanned our faces with a critical eye before continuing.

"Crossing your arms like that makes you look like an army sergeant. Is that what you're aiming for? Are you planning to discipline us?"

My question brought a faint blush to her cheeks. However, before she could respond, Xander interrupted.

"We're waiting for your orders, Angel."

His words lingered in the air because I had nothing to contribute. Technically, what he said was true; we hadn't developed a solid plan yet.

Nerine's lovely face scrunched up as she appeared lost in thought. At last, she directed her attention to Xander.

"Did you search this room for any monitoring devices?"

Xander's jaw twitched in irritation, a sign I recognized all too well. He took his responsibilities seriously and had undoubtedly checked every room in the house. Nerine questioning his diligence would surely irritate him.

But then she winked, and the tension dissipated as we shared a gentle laugh.

She knew as well as I did how meticulous Xander could be, not only in his job but also in other aspects.

"This stays between us," she began, her tone serious. "But I know where Fiona is now. She's safe."

"Why can't we tell our soldiers?" Xander asked. "Or your mother?"

"I'm worried about Mama’s reaction," Nerine sighed. "She's extremely worried right now and won't be able to keep this to herself. She'll spill the news to all the wrong people that we've found Fiona. I can't take that risk. As for our soldiers, I'm not sure who we can trust with this information. So, for now, we trust no one."

"That complicates things," I said, glancing over at Xander to gauge his reaction, which was unreadable.

"You're telling me," Nerine muttered as she paced the room. Frustrated, she ran a hand through her long, dark hair. "Fucking Fiona and her need to dive headfirst into things. Even if it wasn't intentional, that book messed us up, and now we’re stuck in the middle of this damn mess."

"True," I agreed, aware that Nerine was nowhere near finished with the rant bursting out of her.

She walked over to the window, still muttering under her breath. "I mean, what was she thinking? She didn’t think. That’s the problem! She never thinks things through. She's always so stubborn and convinced she's right about everything! It's infuriating! I hoped she’d grow out of it before she could cause real damage. Well, that was a big mistake."

Her voice grew louder as she started to pace.

I shared a smirk with Xander.

I restrained the impulse to tell Nerine that, in many ways, she had just described herself. Stubbornness appeared to run deep in the Angelos family, and perhaps it was some inheritedtrait. In fact, Nerine was likely the most stubborn of them all.

This wasn’t good. At least one, if not both, boys were bound to take after their mother in this.

"Tell us where she is," Xander interjected, trying to get her back on track. "Do we need to mount a rescue mission?"

His urgent tone sliced through the tense atmosphere like a knife. "Please, tell us where she is. Is she in danger? Do we need to rally help for a rescue mission?"

Nerine shook her head, frustration etched into every line of her face.

"There's no rush. She doesn't need rescuing. She's been safe this whole time." She released a heavy sigh. “Fiona was inside her penthouse when the Aetos’s men broke in. She managed to hide and overheard their conversation and plans to abduct Hayes and Charis."

"Who do I have to kill then?" My anger burned bright at the thought of anything happening to those babies.

"No one. Not yet, anyway," Nerine replied, the furrow between her brows deepening. “Fiona staged her kidnapping to protect the boys. She was too scared to seek help but finally reached out to Devani."

"Are you saying she orchestrated all of this?" I asked, unsure if I had grasped the situation correctly.

"In a way, yes," Nerine said with a wry shake of her head. "Can you believe that?"

I snorted in response. Considering it was Fiona, it wasn't too far-fetched an idea.

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